Identity Artificial
by Unholy Preacher
Summary: Story about one of Kasumi's clones.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: all characters belong to tecmo, except for a few supporting ones.  
  
*note: I got the idea for this fic on the "doatec hk" stage on dead or alive 3.  
  
At an abandoned laboratory in Hong Kong, that is where she could recall her first vivid memory. There had been a battle there before. The cramped room was a mess. When she opened here eyes, she could see other girls there. Other girls that looked like her, only they were not breathing. She was wet, cold, and naked. Her instincts immediately told her to get out of that awful place. Carefully, watching her steps for the broken shards of glass on the floor, she walked past a small closet which housed a long white coat. She guessed it belonged to a scientist that had worked there. But he didn't need it now, and she did.  
  
She walked the Hong Kong streets in her bare feet all that night. Running into ever sort of questionable character the shade of night seems to draw. A few of them tried to attack her, but to her surprise, she possessed fighting skills she didn't know she had. After walking around aimlessly all night, she began to grow tired and hungry. She sat down on the steps of a small building and clutched at her coat tightly for warmth. She noticed a man walk towards and start bothering her, but she was too tired to put up very much of a protest against his advances. Suddenly, a woman had grabbed him and slammed him against the wall of the building. This was the first time she saw Marie.  
  
"Quit it Li, can't you see she's not interested?"  
  
"Sorry, I was just trying to be nice."  
  
"Well you have a very ANNOYING way of showing it."  
  
The woman let him go and the man ran away from them, shouting behind him "CRAZY BITCH!!!"  
  
Turning towards her, the woman smiled. "Sorry about him, he's just a local punk that hangs around this block. He can be bothersome at times, but he's really harmless."  
  
"That's okay, I'm just really tired. I could have handled him, but thanks for the rescue anyway."  
  
"Do you live in this building? Cause if you do, I've never seen you around before."  
  
"No, I just decided to rest here awhile, if that's okay?"  
  
"Umm sure, why not, no law against it I guess." The woman looked her over, probably noticing her questionable attire. "Kind of underdressed to be out jogging this early aren't you?"  
  
"I guess..."  
  
The woman had a worried look at her face and then asked, "Do you have a place to stay at?"  
  
She looked down at the steps beneath her and shook her head.  
  
Sighing, "Well, you can come upstairs to my apartment. We can at least get you some decent clothes and a pair of shoes."  
  
As the young girl had come to know, Marie wasn't usually the type to invite total strangers to her home, but she could see that the young girl she had just rescued really needed help. And Marie could see it in her eyes that she was a very nice and sweet girl; traits that won't get you far if you're alone in the streets with no place to stay.  
  
*note: reading and reviewing this would be nice. Flames are welcomed, as I feed on hatred. 


	2. Chapter 2

"Have you seen my small paint brush?"  
  
"Huh?" the young girl was snapped back from her thoughts and into the present.  
  
"My brush Lenina, have you seen it?" Marie asked again. Lenina had been the name given to her by Marie. When they first met, Marie had asked her what her name was but to her distress, she could not remember it. So Marie gave her the name Lenina, after a character in some book, she could not recall.  
  
"You know that small paint brush that I use to sign my name with?" Marie was a struggling artist. Her paintings littered the apartment they lived in. Lenina thought she was very good, but for some reason, she couldn't sell any of them. Her paintings were also very morbid, maybe that was why no one wanted to buy them.  
  
"Aha! Here it is!" She exclaimed, getting up from under a table.  
  
"You should be a bit more careful with where you put your things after you're done painting."  
  
Marie wasn't that old from Lenina really; she was only 24. Her parent had come from the mainland before she was born. She had lived in this city, in this building, all her life. When they passed away five years ago, she was lonely and heart broken. The sudden appearance of Lenina at her doorstep was a blessing. Over the past few months, they had become like sisters.  
  
"I have to go to school now, see you later okay? I'll cook diner right after I get home." Lenina, then hurried out towards the door.  
  
"See ya' kid, good luck." Marie said as she added some finishing touches to her latest work.  
  
*note: flames are welcomed, as I feed on hatred 


	3. Chapter 3

Lenina pedaled her bicycle through the crowded streets of Hong Kong. She did not know how, but Marie somehow forged the necessary papers to get her allowed in school, using her connections. It seemed a little strange to her at first but after a few days, she got the hang of things. She was a very fast learner, as her teachers seem fond of pointing out to her. And she made friends very quickly. The boys especially seem to go out of their way to be sweet to her. Still, how she got here and why she couldn't recall anything prior to the night in the lab, bothered her deeply. Sometimes she would have nightmares about the dead cold eyes of the other girls in the lab with her. It didn't make any sense, why would there be dead girls there that looked exactly like her. She had meant to go back to that place, but she would always get frightened and change her mind at the last minute.  
  
As she turned a corner, she caught the eye of a young girl sitting quietly at a café.  
  
"Oh my god, Kasumi?" the young girl stood up and ran towards the door. Outside she called out quite merrily, "Kasumi!" Everyone in the vicinity turned to look at where the shout came from, including Lenina, who stopped her bike and turned her head. It was then that she realized that the girl was directly addressing her.  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
The young Chinese girl walked towards her, smiling. "Oh my god, Kasumi, it's been so long, what are you doing here?"  
  
"I-I'm sorry, I think you must have me confused with someone else."  
  
Her smiling face suddenly turned into a confused expression. "Kasumi, what are you talking about? It's me, Leifang."  
  
"I really don't know who you are, you have me mistaken for someone else, my name is not Kasumi," She stared at Leifang's now worried face. "I-I have to go, I'm gonna be late for school." With that she sped off on her bicycle, leaving a puzzled Leifang behind.  
  
Lenina didn't know why she did that. She should have jumped at the chance to talk to the girl and find out what she could, but for some reason, she became scared. It all seemed very odd and awkward to her.  
  
*note: I would like to thank kochan for the helpful review and I have incorporated some of your suggestions into the story. Please r/r, flames are welcomed, as I feed on hatred. 


	4. Chapter 4

Leifang stood there, not quite comprehending what had just happened between her and Kasumi. Or at least she thought it was Kasumi, but the kunoichi seemed to insist otherwise. She began walk to the other side of the block where she knew a payphone resided.  
  
"Hello, operator, I need to make a long distance phone call to Japan...?"  
  
In a small curio shop in Tokyo, Ryu Hayabusa is sitting behind the counter reading a newspaper while his significant other, Irene, is busy explaining something to some customers. The phone rings and Ryu, being the closest, answers it.  
  
"Hello, you have rea...."  
  
"Hello, Ryu? It's Leifang."  
  
"Oh. Hello Leifang. This is a surprise."  
  
"Ryu listen, I've just seen Kasumi here in Hong Kong."  
  
"Really? What's she doing all the way there?"  
  
"I don't know, but the really strange part is she didn't even recognize me."  
  
"That is strange."  
  
"That's not all, she kept on insisting that her name wasn't Kasumi."  
  
"And you're quite certain that it was Kasumi?"  
  
"Of course, I'd recognize her anywhere."  
  
"I see. Don't worry too much about it. I'll be there as soon as possible."  
  
After they both said their goodbyes, Hayabusa hung up the phone. Irene was walking towards him. "Who was that?"  
  
"Leifang, she spotted Kasumi."  
  
Irene looked him hard in the eye. "And you're going?"  
  
"I'm sorry Irene, but you know I have to," he cast his eyes down, "If I don't, her own clan might get to her first."  
  
"I just don't see why Hayate wants to kill his own sister."  
  
"He doesn't, believe me he doesn't. But he has no choice, it's the way things are."  
  
He moved closer and took her in his arms. "Please mind the shop while I'm gone, I promise I'll be back before you know it. There's something strange going on, but I will get to the bottom of it." With that, he kissed his beloved and went upstairs to pack.  
  
Somewhere else in Japan, a white garbed ninja ran through the forest at an alarming speed. Avoiding and jumping over the trees with an almost supernatural agility. Ahead of him he saw a figure, also garbed in white, standing on a rock overlooking the river. The figure was staring at the fast flowing river in deep contemplation. Finally, the ninja reached his destination, and bowed respectfully to the figure.  
  
"Sir, we have just received information on the whereabouts of the runaway shinobi." The figure didn't answer but urged him to go on. "She is said to have been spotted in Hong Kong, though we have not been able to confirm this yet." Hayate's eyes narrowed at this. "Should we send a scout to confirm and then gather information?"  
  
"No, I'll go there myself."  
  
"Understood Sir." The ninja bowed after getting the order and then disappeared back to the forest.  
  
*note: flames are welcomed, as I feed on hatred. 


	5. Chapter 5

As she entered the store, the familiar smell of new vinyl records greeted her senses. While the ethereal sounds of Cocteau Twins floated in the air, filling up the whole room. There were a few people searching for cd's and records in there, but it was relatively empty. She headed towards a man decked out in black leather pants, a Bauhaus shirt, and wearing black eyeliner and lipstick. He was arranging some cd's on the rack.  
  
"Hello Shing, is Marie around?"  
  
The man turned around surprised. "Oh, it's you Lenina. Don't scare me like that. She's out in the back getting a few things for me."  
  
Marie came in holding a few posters and a record in her hand. "Hey Shing, I found a Univers Zero record in there, can I have it? Oh, hi Lenina."  
  
"Which one is it?"  
  
"Heresy"  
  
"Sure, I already got that."  
  
"Yes! You're the best boss in the world you know that?"  
  
"I know, just don't take advantage of my kindness."  
  
A customer walked up to them. "Did I hear something about Univers Zero here?"  
  
"I'm sorry guy, but I already gave it to her." Shing responded.  
  
"I'll pay you 50 bucks in DOATEC currency for it."  
  
"Like I said, I already gave it to her, and I don't back out on my word."  
  
"A hundred"  
  
"I really don't..."  
  
"...Two hundred."  
  
"Sold" Shing snatched the record from Marie, whose mouth was gaping a little from shock.  
  
"You jerk; you said I could have it."  
  
"The customers come first," said Shing heading towards the counter. "Don't worry, if it makes you feel any better, I'll lend you my copy."  
  
"It's not the same, dammit!" She screamed at him but Shing wouldn't listen anymore. Noticing Lenina standing there waiting. "Oh I'm sorry Lenina."  
  
"That's alright" She said smiling.  
  
"What are you doing here anyway?"  
  
"Waiting for your shift to be done so we can go home"  
  
"Didn't you say you were gonna cook me diner?" she said half-jokingly.  
  
"I was thinking we could do it together."  
  
"Okay, I was just kidding."  
  
"Umm...Marie?"  
  
"Yea?"  
  
"I met this girl this morning...she seemed to know who I was. Who I really was."  
  
"What? That's great, so what did she tell you?"  
  
"I...um...sort of freaked."  
  
"Oh honey, why?"  
  
"I don't know." Images of cold dead eyes, her dead eyes, flashed through her head. "I really don't know."  
  
"I'll be getting out in about five minutes. We could talk about it on the way home." She started arranging the posters. "Maybe we could find this girl again, where did you see her?"  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The next day, during the school lunch break, Lenina was having lunch with a few friends at a fast food restaurant.  
  
"Lenina," one girl said, "that guy on the corner keeps staring at us, he hasn't even touched his food."  
  
"I know, he's been following me around since this morning" Lenina whispered.  
  
"What? Where?" Another girl asked conspiratorially.  
  
"Don't look!!"  
  
"That guy with the red hair and green eyes? He's cute."  
  
"Sounds like you have a stalker."  
  
"I wouldn't mind having him for a stalker."  
  
"Look guys, this is serious, I'm really scared okay." Lenina stated.  
  
"Don't worry about it, he's probably just building up the nerve to ask you out or something."  
  
After school, Lenina began her trek home on foot. She did not bring her bicycle that day. She walked with her books pressed against her chest while enjoying the hustle and bustle of the streets. After the grueling math exam she took during the last period, she totally forgot about the incident during lunch and this morning. She walked up to a street vendor to buy some vegetables for tonight.  
  
As she absent-mindedly reached for a ripe tomato, she suddenly felt herself touching another hand. She was a little startled when she looked up and saw eyes very similar to her own, only they belonged to a man. She blushed a little from the contact and saw the man smile. Looking at him closely, she could see that he had the same red colored hair as her, as well.  
  
"I'm sorry, you can have this one if you'd like." He offered the tomato in his hand.  
  
"No that's okay, I just wasn't looking where I was reaching for. You can have it."  
  
"Are you sure? It looks like the best one in the bunch."  
  
"Pretty sure" She smiled charmingly.  
  
After gathering a few more vegetables and each of them paying for their respective purchases, the man introduced himself.  
  
"Hi, my name's Hayate."  
  
"Lenina"  
  
"Lenina huh?" He paused. "That's a beautiful name."  
  
"Thanks" she smiled. "Hayate...that doesn't sound like any name I've heard around here."  
  
"That's because I'm Japanese. I came to Hong Kong only recently."  
  
"Oh what are you here for then?" She asked as she unconsciously walked towards her home.  
  
"Business mostly, but I'm hoping to do a little site seeing."  
  
"What do you do? What Business are you in?"  
  
"Surveillance"  
  
"You're like a spy or something?" she said jokingly.  
  
Hayate only smiled. "Something like that."  
  
They talked a while longer until they had reached the steps to her building. "Oh this is where I live. Thanks for walking me home."  
  
"No, it was my pleasure."  
  
She was about to go in when she thought of something.  
  
"Say Hayate?"  
  
"Yes Lenina?"  
  
"I was wondering if you're busy tomorrow."  
  
"No, why do you ask?"  
  
"Well, it's a Saturday tomorrow and I'm free for the day. Maybe you could drop by here and we could take you site seeing?"  
  
"We?"  
  
"Yeah, my friend that I live with, she knows more about this city than I do."  
  
"Sure, I'd love that."  
  
"See you tomorrow then."  
  
"Yes, see you tomorrow."  
  
*note: please review (any problems with what I wrote so far or where the plot is going?). Flames are welcomed, as I feed on hatred. 


	6. Chapter 6

On the sub-cellar of the DOATEC building, Ryu Hayabusa stood inspecting the place.   
The building had been abandoned by DOATEC, that despicable organization that he, not long ago, fought against.   
He noticed that the lab had been wiped clean of any evidence of activity.   
But he could still see the traces of where tests might have been conducted,  
where the computer generators that they used to monitor whatever it was they were working on were.   
He was also aware that someone had been watching him from the shadows for quite some time now.  
  
"She's not really Kasumi, is she Hayate?" he said, not even bothering to turn around to face his friend.  
  
"No, she's not," came the reply.  
  
"Who is she then?"  
  
"During the last tournament, I faced off one of the competitors here." He continued after a brief pause.  
"I saw that this was where they processed some of Kasumi's clones."  
  
Hayabusa didn't say anything.  
  
"The opponent was much tougher than I had originally anticipated.   
We ended up almost totaling this place; including breaking some of the containment units that held the clones.   
After the battle, I checked a few of them to see if any of them were alive, but they weren't."  
  
"You missed one of them, apparently."  
  
"That's what I suspected when I heard the news. But I came here anyway to make sure if my suspicions were correct."  
  
"Then why are you still here, Hayate?  
Why did you agree to see her again, after you had confirmed that this girl was, indeed, just a clone?"  
  
"Spying on me again, Ryu?" Hayate asked half-jokingly.  
  
"I thought it was only fair, since you bugged my phone. But seriously Hayate; what do you plan to do with this girl?"  
  
"Nothing, just go site seeing with her."  
  
"Save the jokes for a merrier occasion. I know you Hayate."  
  
"Then what do you think I'm going to do to the girl?"  
  
"Don't do it Hayate" Hayabusa said calmly, "she's innocent in all of this."  
  
"And what if I do, do it?   
I love my sister Hayabusa, and if sacrificing this girl means that I could stop hunting my sister like some animal,   
then I'll go through it without hesitation."  
  
"But she's innocent, she doesn't deserve this! She's not even responsible for Kasumi breaking the code."   
But Hayate stared onwards, refusing to hear his friend.  
"I love Kasumi too, but killing this girl to save her is wrong Hayate, you must see that!"  
  
The Shinobi of the Wind looked up to his friend.   
"Do you think this is easy for me? I do not take killing anyone lightly Ryu, especially one who's the splitting image of Kasumi,  
"he quickly turned his head away, "but better her than my sister!"  
  
"And how do you think Kasumi will feel about this? If she knew what you were planning to do;   
do you think that she will just allow you to kill this girl, like a sacrificial lamb, in her name?   
Do you think she'll be happy and think what a loving brother you are for doing that for her?"  
  
Hayate closed his eyes, "Farewell Hayabusa" and disappeared in mid-air, leaving a trail of black feathers in his wake.   
  
Ryu Hayabusa called out to his friend, but to no avail.  
  
*note: please review. You can flame it if you like, I don't mind. 


	7. Chapter 7

It had been a long flight and she was tired. She had just finished an assignment in the States and now Donovan had hired her   
for another mission again. Still, the money was good; that was one thing you could count on with DOATEC, they were loaded. Now if she   
only had some time in between jobs to rest, even just a little.  
  
She headed toward the elevator while the bellhop followed her carrying her luggage. A room had already been reserved for her   
by her current employers. When she arrived, she tipped the bellhop and went to the bedroom where a suitcase was waiting for her on the   
bed. She already knew what was in it and decided to put it aside for the moment. She stripped off her clothes and placed them on the bed,   
then headed to the adjoined bathroom to take a long hot shower.  
  
Moments later, she walked out with a towel wrapped around her body and hair. She headed towards the suitcase and opened it.   
To absolutely no surprise, it was loaded with guns and other assorted weapons. She picked one up to check it. Satisfied, she put it back,   
closed the suitcase and set it down on the floor. Sitting down on the bed, she thought about her latest assignment. The objective and   
information had already been given to her while she was still in America; they had lost one of their property, and it was up to her to get it   
back for them. In this case the property was a clone, resembling a girl from the tournament that she, not long ago, participated in. It was   
currently residing in Hong Kong with a civilian. Intercept the girl, kill the civilian.  
  
The clone had escaped from a testing facility in the underground level of the old headquarters. DOATEC might be rich and   
powerful, but they were sloppy. They should have taken care of that lab before they abandoned the building. Now they had a lose end   
dangling. But she didn't complain though, if these companies didn't make mistakes then she'd be out of a job. And if there was one thing   
Christie was good at, it was tying up loose ends.  
  
*note: please review. You can flame it if you want, I don't mind. 


	8. Chapter 8

Ryu Hayabusa rushed past across a thicket of trees in the park, barely visible to the human eye. He had trailed Hayate and his two   
companions here after following them around for the better part of the day. As he followed them from one place to another, he could not  
help but be a little disturbed by the situation. He never thought he would be trying to save a clone's life. His mind drifted back to the time  
that he had met his doppleganger. That clone had tried to kill Irene and frame him for it. But this Lelina does not seem to be evil like his   
own counterpart. Thinking about past events made his mind inevitably wander back to previous episodes in his life; mostly about Irene.  
He had sacrificed so much for her, even his family's precious Dragon Sword. And now he could not even find the time to spend with her.  
The situation was not helped by the fact that Irene was away most of the time with her work with the CIA. She had taken time off this week  
to be with him, but that had not worked out as planned.  
  
As he looked on toward where Hayate and the two women were at, he almost wished he was still battling monsters and sorcerers instead.  
At least back then he spent that time with Irene. He spent most of that time trying to rescue her, but it was still better than not being near  
her.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
  
On the sidewalk across the street from her assignment's building, Christie narrowed her eyes staring into the apartment's windows. A   
slight gust of wind blew through her white hair and long black trench coat. She wore her blue business suit underneath and carried the  
weapon filled suitcase in her left hand. Walking to a nearby restaurant, she decided she would wait there till her target appeared. As she   
was walking though , she felt something hit the back of her head. It wasn't very hard but it still annoyed her. Her reflexes alowed her to  
catch the ricochetting object, which she saw was a soccer ball.   
  
A small boy with a slight grin on his face approached her cautiously. "Can you please pass the ball to us lady?"  
  
Christie looked behind the boy and saw that a group of his little friends were waiting for her to give them the ball. "Not till you apologize   
for hitting me you little brat!" She snapped, fixing the steel cold gaze of her smoke blue eyes towards the boy.  
  
The boy's face turned from a smile into a frown. "I-I-It wasn't me, it was her." He said pointing to a girl in the back who hid from behind   
another little kid. The boy looked like he was about to cry.  
  
"You shouldn't rat out your friends like that."  
  
"Sorry" came the hushed reply.  
  
"Listen, I might let it go if you tell me something."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Do you know a girl who lives in that building?" She said motioning towards the building she inspected previously, "Red hair,light brown   
eyes?"  
  
The boy's eyes became wide and his mouth gaped open, happy with the fact that he indeed knew who the woman was asking about.   
"That's Lelina, " he said with a bright smile, "she plays with us sometimes."  
  
"And where is Lelina now?"  
  
"She left with Marie and a stranger this morning."  
  
"Really. Do you know where they went?"  
  
"No, can I have the ball now?" The boy asked with an expectant look upon his face, having just answered her question.  
  
"No."  
  
"But you said.."  
  
"I told you to never rat out your friends like that; you just did."   
  
Christie smiled as she turned her back and walked away. Then when she was just far away enough from the boy, she turned around, threw  
the ball in the air and expertly kicked it to the throng of kids behind him, who immediately resumed playing. She entered the restaurant to   
think about how she was gonna go about doing this job.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
The three of them decided to have a picnic in the park. After walking around for most of the day, it was good to just sit around and relax.  
The two women took Hayate to a few landmarks in the city. Marie did all the explaining of the places they went to since Lelina was just as  
clueless about them as their guest was. Hayate stood a few feet away from them and stared at the fountain nearby. At the water that   
flowed from the statue in the middle of it.  
  
"It's beautiful isn't it?" He heard a voice coming from behind him.  
  
"Yes, it's lovely." He turned back to Lelina, smiling.  
  
She smiled back.  
  
She is so much like Kasumi, he thought. Hayate shook the thought from his mind and reminded himself that this was something he had to  
do for the real Kasumi.  
  
"Come on, Marie has the picnic all ready and set up." She chirped enthusiatically.  
  
Hayate scanned the few surrounding trees in the park one last time before following the girl to where Marie had set the cloth and picnic   
basket. It was almost time.  
  
*note: read it, review it, flame it if you like. 


	9. Chapter 9

author's note: On the last chapter I misspelled Lenina as Lelina. Sorry about that, I get confused sometimes.  
  
Hayabusa watched the three of them intently. Looking out for anything strange his friend might do. It was then that he  
heard of few leaves in the near by trees rustle. Out of the corner of his eye he saw three Mugen Tenshin ninjas moving   
towards Hayate and his companions. Moving just as fast as the intruders, Hayabusa caught up with one of them and  
delivered a blow in the head towards the unsuspecting ninja. This did not go unnoticed by the other two, who were  
alerted to Hayabusa's presence. Thay halted their advance towards their target and instead turned there attention to   
the Dragon Ninja. The one that Hayabusa just attacked started to get up slowly, joing his associates. Wordlessly they  
circled Hayabusa and drew there swords, waiting for the right moment to strike. Hayabusa's sword was still sheathed,   
but he clutched at it tightly to prepare for a fight. He was formulating a strategy in his head to fight off the three highly   
skilled Mugen Tenshin assassins while at the same time taking note of their movements.  
  
The first ninja to his left came in closer and tried to slash over head with his sword but Ryu grabbed his apparel and   
threw him into his team mate behind Ryu. The shuriken thrown by the ninja behind him barely missed Hayabusa and   
hit a tree. The last ninja to his right also made a quick slash, but Ryu ducked it and, unsheathing his sword, wounded   
the ninja with a downward slash. The cut was deep, but the Dragon Ninja made sure he did not kill him.  
  
The commotion did not go unnoticed by the three people nearby. While Hayabusa was fighting the Mugen Tenshin  
assassins, Lenina ran towards the ruckus with Marie not far behind. Hayate did not react fast enough to stop them   
and was chasing after them as well.  
  
When Lenina arrived at the scene of the disturbance, a shuriken came straight towards her. She dodged it easily   
enough, but now it was heading for Marie. With a quicke burst of speed, Hayate caught the runaway shuriken. He did  
not want more deaths than what was necessary.  
  
One of the two ninjas still left standing moved toward Lenina, sword in hand, ready to strike her dead. On instinct, she   
evaded the blade and fought off her attacker. Marie wanted to help her friend but Hayate grabbed her arm and quickly  
delivered a sharp blow to the back of her head, knocking her unconscious. Trying to prevent her from getting herself   
harmed.  
  
Lenina was preoccupied with her opponent and did not notice Hayate. Ryu however had just taken care of the other  
ninja and saw that Hayate was about to throw the shuriken that he caught, towards the unsuspecting girl. Quickly   
reaching for his own shurikens, Hayabusa telegraphed the speed and direction of Hayate's projectile and threw his   
own to block and cancel it out.  
  
Ryu approached Hayate and finally confronted him.   
  
"What do you think you're doing Hayabusa?" Hayate questioned his friend.  
  
"Trying to stop you from making a horrible mistake."  
  
"Well I don't need your help." With that statement, Hayate rushed at his best friend and began their fight. Through  
out the battle, Hayabusa consciously made an effort the lead the fight away from Lenina. Soon, they took to fighting  
over the trees, jumping from branch to branch.  
  
After Lenina had finally taken care of the last ninja, she noticed that she was the only one left standing. She looked   
around for the others and saw Marie lying on the ground unconscious. She hurried towards her friends to check if   
she was alright. Looking around more, she was worried that she did not see Hayate anywhere. Lenina struggled to   
carry Marie over her shoulder and headed for outside the park. She was worried about Hayate but she knew she had  
to get her friend away from there as quickly as possible.  
  
Finally arriving at the streets, she hailed a cab and placed Marie into the seat. After sitting down herself, she told the   
driver what street to drop them off at.  
  
******************************************************************************************  
  
Hayabusa flipped to his feet and looked back at the unconscious Hayate. The battle had lasted for quite a while until  
he was able to get the upper hand and izuna dropped his friend from the trees into the ground.   
  
He ran back to where he last saw the girl as fast as he could, but when he got there he saw that she was no longer   
around. And the ninja's he fought earlier were also gone. He feared the worst but decided to keep an optomistic mind.  
Heading out of the park and into the nearest building, he headed toward the girl's home, jumping from rooftop to   
rooftop.  
  
******************************************************************************************  
  
When the cab finally stopped near her building, Lenina paid the cab driver and stepped out with Marie's arm on her  
shoulders. Her friend was a still disoriented but could walk a little bit now. Lenina reached for her keys and opened   
the door to her building. Their apartment was only two floors up but Lenina decided to use the elevator since Marie  
could barely walk.   
  
Unbeknownst to them, a woman had followed them in from outside. Heading towards the stairs, Christie hurried to   
get there ahead of them.  
  
Lenina stepped out of the elevator and carried Marie over to their apartment. Before she could the door though she   
felt a sharp pain in her back and suddenly lost consciousness. Marie's feet collapsed beneath her and could hear  
footsteps coming towards her.  
  
Christie put away the tranquilizer gun and took out a silencer-tipped pistol. Her employers clearly stated that they   
wanted the clone alive, but the civilian who housed her eleminated.  
  
Through her blurry vision, Marie saw the white haired woman pointing a gun to her head. "Wh-what do you want?"  
She asked her would-be assassin, barely coherent.  
  
Christie didn't answer her and was about to pull the trigger when something collided with her gun, causing her to lose  
her grip. She turned around to where it came from and saw a familiar face near the stairs.  
  
"You...what are you doing here?"  
  
Ryu was taken back a bit to see a woman that he had met at the tournament. "I could ask you the same thing." After  
a brief pause, he continued. "What do you want with these women?"  
  
"That's none of your business."  
  
Christie then jumped to where Ryu was and delivered three quick snake-like strikes to his various pressure points.  
Ryu staggered back a bit and before he could recover, Christie dealt him another blow knocking him off his feet.  
  
She had planned to follow up, but she could sense new arrivals behind her. Turning around, she saw two similarly  
attired ninjas heading towards the girl.   
  
Christie looked down at Ryu. "You brought some friends over, I see."  
  
The first ninja drew his sword out and was about to kill Lenina when Christie jumped up and landed two consecutive  
kicks to his chest and head area. While she was still crouched down from her landing, she executed a double-knife   
hand to the knees of the second incoming ninja. She did not anticipate a third one however, and the last unmasked  
red-headed ninja kicked her on her head, using it as a spring board and performed a diving motion with his sword   
pointed down towards Lenina.  
  
The British assassin saw this however, and while rising, quickly executed a roundhouse kick to Hayate's spine before  
the sword could touch the girl.  
  
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the civilian woman slowly try to get up. Christie rolled over to where she had   
dropped her gun and picked it up. Before she could pull the trigger though, she was again halted. This time Hayate  
threw a shuriken at he gun, forcing her once again to drop it.  
  
She looked at the now standing Hayate with a hint of irritation. "This is getting to be really annoying."  
  
With that Christie attacked Hayate and it soon developed into a full on fight with both parties exchanging blows   
and counters. Hayabusa, seeing his chance, stealthily carried Lenina out of the building and outside the roof as  
the dark began engulfing the city.  
  
author's note: I HATE writing fight scenes. I hope it wasn't too confusing. Anyway please read and review.  
Flames are welcomed as I feed on hatred. 


	10. Chapter 10

Christie dodged a strike that the ninja clan leader threw at her. She was about to retaliate when she saw one of the other ninjas recover from her last attack. The momentary lapse of focus did not go unnoticed by Hayate who caught her off guard and delivered a hard corkscrew uppercut. The British assassin suddenly found herself slammed hard against the concrete wall.   
  
Thinking she was out, Hayate motioned for his men to follow him to the roof where Hayabusa had just taken Lenina. He ran to Marie and picked her up. She was still staggering and could barely form a cohesive protest.  
  
"What's…goin' on? Whe…where are you taking…me?"  
  
Hayate did not say anything and just continued to run up the stairs to the roof. The two ninjas followed him. Their third comrade had stayed behind because of the injury Ryu caused him earlier on the park.  
  
Back on the hall, Christie slowly got up and reached for the cell phone on her coat. "Hello? They got away, I ran into some unexpected problems. The ninja, Hayate is apparently here after her. They went to the roof of the building…"  
  
As Hayate finally reached to the top of the building, he saw his friend jump to the next the building with Lenina in his arms.   
  
"Stop it right there, Hayabusa." Hayate shouted a warning to his friend.   
  
Ryu turned around and saw Hayate also carrying a girl. Two of the ninjas he had fought earlier were right behind him. They then stepped ahead of Hayate and started running towards Hayabusa, drawing out their swords in the process.  
  
Hayabusa placed Lenina down behind him and once again unsheathed his sword to prepare for combat. As they got closer, Hayabusa tried to reason with them.  
  
"Stop…this isn't the girl you're after." The two ninjas had now jumped into the roof. "Hayate misinformed you, this is just a clone. It's not the real Kasumi."  
  
But as he expected, they did not listen and continued their advance. Ryu had to try though to avoid more bloodshed. He rushed towards the aggressors and slashed at one them, but the ninja dodged it. The two then mounted a counter attack and somersaulted to where he was standing when Ryu heard shots ring out. He jumped up quickly to dodge whoever was shooting, but he could see that the other two ninjas did not escape the bullets and were lying on the rooftop dead.   
  
He suddenly heard the voice of Hayate shouting to him. "Ryu…save the girl." He turned around and saw Hayate on the other building tossing Marie dangerously into the air towards him. He jumped up and teleported to catch the girl in midair and then landing softly on the roof.   
  
Ryu turned around to see where his friend was and found him unconscious at the hands of some strange men. Other than the white haired woman with them, he did not recognize any of them but noticed the small logo on their black uniforms. DOATEC.  
  
He then heard a noise from behind him on the next building and saw two other men in the same uniform taking Lenina with them inside the building. They must have been the ones who fired those shots. He knew he had to make a split second decision and decided to go after Lenina.  
  
He jumped to the other building with Marie in his arms and went over to the roof exit. As he got to the stairs though, he was greeted by a thick knockout gas. Ryu covered his nose and went back up to the rooftop for air. He looked up across to the other building and saw that Hayate was also gone.   
  
************************************************************************  
  
Somewhere in Germany, a well dressed man stands watching as a helicopter nears the landing area in the large fortress. He ducks low to greet the people who had just arrived in the helicopter; his bodyguards following closely behind him, doing the same.   
  
"Do you have the clone?" The well dressed man shouted to one of them, making sure his voice was loud enough to hear over the noise of the chopper.   
  
A few men came to the helicopter dragging two stretchers with them. One of the people who just arrived responded to the man called Donovan. "Yes, and we also have someone else you might be happy to see." He motioned to an unconscious young man who was now being laid down on a stretcher. "We had to handcuff them just to be safe, but we had no trouble on the way here, they were drugged up pretty good."  
  
Donovan only smiled while staring at the unconscious Hayate. "Well, well, nice to see you again Project Epsilon."  
  
author's note: Finally. A change of setting from one place I've never been to and know nothing about to…..another place I've never been to and know nothing about. Oh well, read and review. Flames are welcomed, as I feed on hatred. 


	11. Chapter 11

She was in their bathroom; the water running, filling the tub up. She was getting ready to take a nice warm bath. She took off her robe and stepped in. The water felt good against her flesh. She lied down and rested her head. Looking up at the bathroom mirror she saw her reflection.  
  
She was standing there in the bathroom, looking at the mirror. She was about to take off her robe when she saw something strange in the reflection. There was someone in the bath that she was getting ready for herself. She turned around and saw that it was her lying on the bath water. Only it was not her. It had those dead eyes; smiling at her.  
  
The mirror broke; she got out of the room and ran. She ran towards the stairs and saw Hayate standing there below. Hayate. She called out. But he did not answer. He just stared at her intently. She looked in his beautiful eyes and was entranced by them. Lost in them. So lost. She had to find a way out. She couldn't breath. There was so air there, just water.   
  
A tear dropped. It was Marie's. She flowed with the tear and escaped Hayate's gaze, back into the tub. Marie was standing over her. Crying. Why was she crying? Marie, why are you crying?   
  
She didn't get an answer. She didn't need them. She could see in the dark mirror in Marie's eyes.   
  
Blood.  
  
She was floating in it; in Marie's eyes, and stared back into her own.  
  
Cold dead eyes.  
  
She woke up; slowly opening her lids. Water rushed into them. She closed them again and readjusted. She opened them again and could see she was in a lab of some sort. Her entire body felt wet. She realized she was nude, floating in something liquid inside a glass container. An oxygen mask covered the lower part of her face, allowing her to breath. She looked around the room once again. Hayate was there too.  
  
author's note: If the plot is getting stranger and more disjointed with each successive chapter, it's because I'm making this stuff up as I go along. I have no idea where this story is heading. Hell, if I wanted to I could make this story go on forever.  
  
::laughs maniacally:: (oh the torture). Let's hope it doesn't come to that.   
  
Anyway, please read and review. Flames are welcomed as I feed on hatred. 


	12. Chapter 12

Ryu Hayabusa ran swiftly; jumping from roof top to roof top. The lights of the city became a linear blur; as the lights of the buildings and the neon below all fused into one hallucinogenic whole. The woman in his arms was vaguely aware of what was happening or what speed they were traveling at. She looked up above to see the few visible stars glow loudly and string the heavens with its course. She felt hazy but could not protest against the moment.  
  
As Hayabusa neared his destination, the buildings became taller and taller. The linear blur of the lights changed from horizontal to a nauseating vertical as he jumped towards the taller structures that made up the city skyline. To Marie, it seemed as if he was flying. She remembered a scene in an American movie she once saw. She looked up towards her hero's face but could still not make out anything clear. Her head pounded too much, and her ears made a ringing sound as they went higher and higher. All she could see were his long red-brown hair and her black one entangled with one another. To her it looked like the tentacles of a sea creature looking up at the blue night sky from the deep black waters beneath.  
  
Finally the blurring motion stopped; everything was clear again. And they landed on one of the balconies on a tall building. The cool night air which a second ago seemed like a raging wind now came to a serene halt. Ryu went opened the doors and went inside. Upon arrival, he concentrated on heading directly to the sofa in the middle of the living room to place the tired woman there. So intent was he in that one simple purpose that he did not notice that someone was already there in the room, staring silently at him. He turned around and was surprised to see the face of Irene Lew with her flaming red hair, intently looking at him, an aura of a burning question visible on her face.  
  
"Ryu," she asked, more out of surprise than anger, "who is this woman?"  
  
Hayabusa did not hear her question; his mind had a question of its own and could not accommodate another one. "Irene! What are you doing here?"  
  
"I was wondering what was going on here." She looked to the woman on the couch and then back to Ryu. "Kasumi stopped over at the shop yesterday and I thought that was strange considering that you were here in Hong Kong looking for her."  
  
"Where's Lei-fang?"  
  
"She and Kasumi went down to the grocery to get some food."  
  
"Kasumi's here?" another surprise for Ryu.  
  
"Yes, she came with me after I told her that you received a phone call from Lei-fang saying that she was here."  
  
"I see…"  
  
"Ryu, what's going on?" Irene asked; her voice more than just hinting at a touch of concern.  
  
"Let's go over to the kitchen, we'll discuss this over tea."  
  
"Yes of course…tea." Irene sighed as she followed Ryu to the kitchen. He was preparing to boil some water in a tea pot while trying to think of how to begin. After a few seconds passed by with nothing said, Irene was getting a little impatient, "Well?"  
  
"Well…the Kasumi that Lei-fang spotted the other day turned out to be a clone."  
  
"A clone…" Irene asks a little shocked. "You mean like the one that Foster created of you?"  
  
"Kind of, I suppose. But the clone Foster created was evil. It knew what it was and obeyed Foster's orders without question. This clone of Kasumi, though, has no idea what she is. But that may change soon enough."  
  
"What do you mean?" A confused Irene asked him.  
  
"It's a long story but she's been captured by DOATEC along with Hayate."  
  
"Hayate…"  
  
"Yes, he was going to kill the girl, but we ran into some unexpected trouble with DOATEC." Ryu frowned and lowered his gaze to tiled floor. "I wasn't able to save him or the girl. But I did manage to rescue that woman that I came in with. She's a friend of Kasumi's clone. I brought her here because it wasn't safe in the apartment that she and the girl stayed at."  
  
"Does she know about the girl?"  
  
"No, but I will have to tell her of course. She deserves to know what's going on."  
  
"Deserve to know what?" Irene and Ryu both turn around to where the voice came from. Marie was standing at the kitchen entrance; her hand clutching the doorway for support. They could see she was still a little groggy.   
  
Irene came towards her, her hands reached out to try to help the woman. "You shouldn't be up in the state you're in. Why don't you go let me help you back into the sofa so you can rest for a bit?"  
  
"No, get away from me!" Marie shouted, shrinking away from Irene's hands. "I don't know you people. What the hell's going on here? Where's Lenina?"  
  
Irene stood back and looked towards Ryu who took a chair and pushed it forward towards Marie. "Why don't you sit down for a bit? Lenina is with Hayate."  
  
"You're friends of Hayate?" Marie slowly moved towards the chair that Ryu had held out. She had trusted them a little bit now with the mention of Hayate's name; and she knew that she wouldn't be able to stand up for very long and not feel dizzily sick.  
  
"Yes, Hayate is my best friend." Ryu started as the girl sat down. "My name is Ryu Hayabusa," then motioning a hand towards Irene, "this is Irene Lew."  
  
"Hi." Irene put on her most convincing smile and extended her hand, which Marie gingerly took.  
  
The woman then turned her attention back towards Ryu. "Where are they?"  
  
Before Hayabusa could even begin to formulate an explanation in his head though, he heard the door to the apartment burst open and could hear the cheerful laughter of the apartment's owner as Lei-fang entered. That laugh always seemed to Ryu, childlike, belying the young woman's age.   
  
The three turned their heads towards the kitchen entrance where a smiling Lei-fang walked in, carrying a grocery bag in each hand. Behind the young Chinese woman was a figure of a girl with red hair and a sweet angelic face, also carrying two grocery bags.  
  
"…Lenina!" Marie exclaimed joyously; happy to see her friend unhurt.  
  
It took Kasumi a little while to register that the stranger was directly addressing her. She placed the groceries on the kitchen counter and turned silently towards the seated woman; a strange quizzical look in her eyes.  
  
"Ryu, what's going on here; who is this woman?" Lei-fang asked brusquely, looking directly at Ryu, who was by now busying himself preparing five cups of tea.  
  
  
During the next hour, Ryu explained to the four women all that had happened. Kasumi and Lei-fang looked on but Marie had a hard time swallowing the facts. She was easier to convince however with Kasumi's newly arrived presence, though she was still understandably troubled with the whole thing. Kasumi too seemed troubled, and both women remained quiet and lost in their own thoughts through out the remainder of the conversation.   
  
"So what do we do now?" Asked Lei-fang, her head propped up on one of her arms lying across the table."  
  
"Well, I am going to Paris the first thing next morning." Ryu answered back, emphasizing the word/letter "I" to make clear his intentions of going alone.  
  
"I'm going with you." Kasumi snapped wide awake from her thoughts. "I have to help my brother."  
  
"So am I Ryu." Irene announced from beside him.  
  
"No Irene, it's too dangerous for you." Ryu responded. "Kasumi can go because she's capable of handling herself in that type of situation…"  
  
"Oh and I'm not!" Irene snapped back angrily. "I'm a CIA operative Ryu, not some old housewife. I've faced off Jaquio, Ashtar, and the same monsters as you and I've survived..."  
  
Barely, Ryu thought. "Look Irene, I need you here to look after Marie, those DOATEC assassins might still be after her."  
  
Marie looked up upon hearing the mention of her name. "I'm going with you whether you like it or not. I need to find Lenina."  
  
Ryu turned to see Irene looking at him with a smug satisfied look of victory on her beautiful face. "And besides, I work for the government; I have more resources at my disposal. You need me Ryu."  
  
At last Hayabusa finally gave in. "Fine you can both go, but only until it gets too dangerous."  
  
Irene was about to say something about that last statement, but decided not to push it. She'll go about it one step at a time.  
  
"Hey! What about me?" Lei-fang interjected. "I'm going too."  
  
"What about your school?" Ryu asked.  
  
"I can afford to miss a few classes, it's no problem. And besides, I've always wanted to go to Paris."  
  
"We're not going there to go attend fashions shows."   
  
"Why are we going there anyway?" Irene wondered.  
  
"To see an opera…"  
  
"An opera…?" Lei-fang scoffed.  
  
"You'll see when we get there, don't worry about it." Ryu said calmly. "Meanwhile you have more pressing business to attend to."  
  
"What?" Lei-fang asked quizzically.  
  
"Sleeping arrangements…"  
  
"What about dinner? All this talk is making me hungry." Irene stood up and rubbed her belly with her hand, feigning hunger.   
  
"We could all go out for dinner." Lei-fang suggested. "I'm not in the mood to cook anything."  
  
"Sounds good to me," Irene then turned towards Marie. "What about you Marie, are you feeling up to it?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm feeling a lot better now. My headache's gone, anyway. And I am feeling a little hungry."  
  
"That settles it then." Irene started walking towards the living room to get her coat. "Kasumi, are you coming too?"   
  
"Yes." Kasumi answered as she started getting up.  
  
"What about you Ryu?" Irene looked at him. "You must be hungry from all that running and jumping around you did today."  
  
"Now that you mention it I am feeling hungry." Ryu the got up and followed Irene out of the kitchen. "Just wait for me until I change into some normal clothes first."  
  
author's note: Umm, I don't know what that last part is about, I guess I must be hungrier than I thought. Anyway please read and review. As always you are allowed to flame this without any objections from me.  
  
Also, you've asked this before Alex Warlorn; Hayabusa's clone was seen in Ninja Gaiden 3. And in case you were wondering, Foster, the Jaquio, and Ashtar are all bad guys in the Ninja Gaiden series. 


	13. Chapter 13

Helena bowed and smiled before the cheering crowd before her and proceeded to exit behind the curtains. Backstage, the people and stagehands all congratulated her on her performance as she made her way to her dressing room. Before reaching the door though, she was greeted by two very familiar faces.   
  
"Kasumi! Lei-fang! What are you doing here?" Helena exclaimed as she saw her two old friends.  
  
"To see you perform." Lei-fang spoke up first, "And you were absolutely great by the way."  
  
"She was asleep through most of it." Kasumi added, smiling.   
  
"I only fell asleep when it was the other people singing." She knew Kasumi said it good-heartedly but she still felt compelled to defend herself - partly because it was true. "I didn't miss any of yours."  
  
Helena smiled at her and then looked past her two friends two see Hayabusa standing there with two other women she never saw before. Lei-fang noted where she was looking.   
  
"Oh, they're with us." She pointed out. "I believe you already know Ryu."  
  
"Of course" she made a courteous smile.  
  
Lei-fang continued on with her introductions. "This is Irene and Marie." She said as she motioned a hand towards them respectively.  
  
Helena closed the small distance between them and offered her hand. "Hi, I'm Helena, very pleased to meet you."  
  
They each both shook her hand, and returned her smile and greeting.   
  
Then stepping back to address all of them, she asked them a question that had been burning in her mind. "So, what brings you all here?"  
  
Ryu took this as his signal and decided to immediately get down to business. "I'm afraid this isn't a pleasure call Miss, nor did we come here to simply hear your performance, lovely as it was."  
  
"I thought as much." Helena interrupted.  
  
Hayabusa paused for a bit then continued. "If you don't mind, I think it would be best if we discuss this inside your room."  
  
Helena now had a slightly troubled look on her face due to the seriousness in Hayabusa's tone, but she slowly agreed. She opened the door to her dressing room and motioned for all of them to get inside.  
  
"What's this all about?" She asked hesitantly as she closed the door.  
  
"It's about your late-father's organization." Ryu stated plainly.  
  
Helena cast her stare down to the floor. "I'm sorry, but I'm no longer involved with DOATEC nor do I ever want to be again."  
  
"We're not going to ask you anything drastic," Hayabusa began, "we just want you to give us some information, that's all."  
  
Kasumi then interjected. "Please Helena, they've kidnapped my brother."  
  
Helena remembered the past tournaments. She remembered Hayate; he went by another name before. She recalled that he was very similar to Kasumi. "What do you want to know?"  
  
"Well for starters, do you know where they might have taken him?" Ryu asked.  
  
Helena thought back then began to answer. "At the last tournament I was captured by Donovan. He held me at a fortress in Germany. They still might be there now."  
  
"Are you sure?" Hayabusa questioned.  
  
"Well, there were a few laboratories located on the lower floors, though I really can't be sure that's where they took your friend."  
  
"It's the only lead we have" Ryu continued. "I assume you're familiar with the place then?"  
  
"Yes a little bit." She turned her head towards Ryu. "On second thought, I think I'll come with you. I still have a score to settle with Donovan."  
  
author's note: please read and review. Flames, constructive criticism, suggestions, or anything else are all welcomed. 


	14. Chapter 14

She could feel her skin get colder as the fluid drained from inside the containment tank.   
  
"Get her out of there and begin the reconditioning." A calm voice belonging to Donovan ordered.  
  
There were only three other people there in the lab with him: two were security and one a scientist. The scientist helmed the computer controls to the machinery holding Lenina. He opened the containment glass and the two other men went in to take the unconscious girl. After they put on a standard issue white garment over her, Donovan was content with the situation and began to walk towards the exit.   
  
"I trust that you'll have no problem with her reconditioning Doctor?" He asked behind him.   
  
"No sir."  
  
"Good. I'll be in the other lab to see how the other subject is responding to his reconditioning. I'll be back later to check on your progress." With that, Donavan went out and the metallic door automatically closed behind him.  
  
The two security men now sat the weak Lenina in a chair. They had strapped both her wrists to each of the chair's arms. The scientist was behind them - a syringe prepared in his hand.  
  
"You two can leave now." He said to the two men.  
  
"But sir, we were ordered to keep an eye on her." One of them protested.  
  
"Don't worry. As you can see, she's in no condition to cause any trouble. I can handle it. Stay outside the door and inform me if someone is about to come in."  
  
The two men looked at each other and subtly rolled their eyes. They did, however, reluctantly agree and headed towards the exit. By this time, Lenina had regained consciousness and was now trying to loosen the straps while the three men were distracted.  
  
The scientist looked on as the two men walked outside the door. He waited a few more seconds to make sure the door had completely shut tightly. He then went towards the door and entered the codes to lock it from the inside. It was a sound-proof door, so he didn't worry about them being so near. Then turning his attention back towards Lenina, his hands began to shake from excitement as he held the syringe.   
  
"Don't worry my dear," he was talking more to himself than the girl, "this won't hurt you a bit. It'll just make you a little bit more open to suggestion. That way it'll be much easier to reprogram your mind."   
  
A wide grin came to his face as he got closer. What happened next was so sudden that the grin never even left him. The straps in the chair went flying loose and Lenina quickly got up and grabbed the syringe from his hand. Coming behind him, she locked his arms and jabbed the syringe in his neck. The needle punctured his skin; she did not inject the chemicals in just yet.   
  
"Where's Hayate?" She hissed in his ears.  
  
The half-choking scientist tried to yell for help.  
  
"Wrong answer…" Lenina then delivered the full dosage into his bloodstream. He fell limply from her hold, and began convulsing on the floor.  
  
She went over to the exit and pry open the sliding metal doors but it wouldn't budge. Noticing the small controls beside it, she randomly pressed the different buttons to get the door to open - it was no use. Frustrated, Lenina punch the controls. There was a buzzing sound, and then a voice came from the intercom above the controls.  
  
"What is it sir?" The voice asked. Lenina didn't know what to say and just remained silent. "Sir…?" the voice asked again with a slightly worried tone, and again she remained silent.  
  
The door suddenly slid open and Lenina was confronted by two men who had drawn their guns from their holsters. She struck one of them unconscious and then the other before any of them had a chance to fire. She quietly snuck out into the hallway as the door closed behind her.  
  
author's note: read and review. Flames, constructive criticisms, or anything else are all welcomed. 


	15. Chapter 15

Lenina walked quietly through the halls - her bare feet not making a sound. She surveyed her surroundings. The stone walls and floors looked old; it reminded her of a dungeon. The doors however, looked relatively new - made of solid metal. Electric lights were installed in sequence overhead, lighting the otherwise dark-looking passage - a darkness that emanated from the black of its walls. It was by now means a small one directional hallway. It branched out to a couple of other passages to one side.   
  
Ahead of her, she could hear footsteps coming towards her. She turned to her right into another intersecting passage. She heard two voices pass right by, not giving her direction a glance. She continued walking further into her chosen hall. After walking for a few more minutes, she saw one of the doors open. A man wearing a long white coat came out. She pressed her back into one of the walls hoping that the doctor wouldn't see her. To her immense relief, the man went to the opposite direction.  
  
When the man was nowhere in site, she walked closer towards the door that he came from. She stepped in front of the door and began inspecting it, searching for a way to get it, when the door suddenly slid open by itself. Lenina hesitated and scanned the inside for a second before she went in. There didn't seem to be anyone there. The room looked very much like the one she was in before. She looked around more and saw someone tied to chair - wearing a garment very similar to hers. She inspected more closely and noticed the soft strands of red hair on top of a bent down head; it was Hayate.   
  
She quickly ran towards the figure and hurriedly undid the straps in his arms. Hayate weakly looked up to her face and whispered, "K-Kasumi?"  
  
She was confused for a second but decided to think about it later. "It's me, Hayate, Lenina." She tried her best to smile. "Don't worry I'll get you out of here."  
  
Hayate leaned into her limply as she put his arm on to her shoulder and held on to his waste. She tried to carry him, but he was a lot heavier than Marie. She had to make due with his feet being dragged through the floor. She stumbled for a second and began to get up when she noticed a yellowish light being cast to the ground. What she saw as she looked up horrified her completely. In the tank of orange fluid, from which the light in the room was filtered through, was a girl. Its deformed figure gave slight hints that its features were exactly like hers; those lifeless eyes, which she has seen a million times; the red hair which was only cropping up in a few places, but nevertheless resembled hers in every other way.  
  
"Early experiments, I'm afraid."   
  
Lenina looked back startled at the voice behind her. "Who are you?"  
  
"How rude of me, I haven't introduced myself." The man's grin could be seen even in the shadows. "I'm Victor Donovan…your creator."  
  
"My creator? What are you talking about!?" She screamed.  
  
Donovan ignored her outburst though. "My-my, such a perfect specimen; you know, you're one of the few who actually survived the initial experiments. Most of the others ended up like your sister over there." He pointed to the tank behind her.   
  
The information slowly sunk into Lenina's head. "You're lying."  
  
"I'm afraid not my dear. Though I'm afraid we missed you the first time. You see some of the other clones looked normal enough, but most of them were missing one or two important internal organs. Most of them died the minute they were created. Others survived barely of course; so we take out a few organs here, transplant them to another there, and hope for the best. You, however, came out perfectly, without anything missing…or extra for that matter." He smiled and frowned instantly. "But alas, we were all so busy, producing failure upon failure; and the scientist I hired, yeeesh, all so incompetent. I assure you I had them all fired and moved the lab to another location. But anyway, you've come back at last."  
  
Lenina closed her eyes. "No! You're a liar." She then directed her glare back towards Donovan. "Get out of my way!"  
  
"Of course," Donovan made a hand gesture towards the door and bowed, "I wouldn't dare think of crossing you."  
  
Lenina pulled Hayate on her back and held on to his arms. After feeling him secure in her hold, she ran as fast as she could towards the exit.   
  
After the door closed, Donovan walked towards a phone and picked it up. "Alert all security - search all floors beginning with the lower levels. We have two prisoners attempting to escape."  
  
She ran blindly through the halls, turning every which way. A flight of stairs is found - go that way, another passage - this way. As if running fast could blow away the thoughts from the mind - the wind contesting against the storm inside. A guard's voice is heard over there, go the other way. Footsteps echo through the halls over there - go to another flight of stairs. And then another, and then another, go this way, and then another. We are a slave to misery.  
  
And then stop. White railings encase the large balcony. In front of her is an abyss colored by the blue night sky - stars sewed-in to the cloth. Behind her, she could hear voices - pushing, always pushing towards the void. Behind her, a voice different from the others, took prominence in the clouded sky above her eyes.  
  
"Lenina," Hayate struggled, "take us below."  
  
The young girl leaned over the railings and looked down to the wilderness beneath. "I can't, we're too high up."  
  
"You have the ability to teleport us down. Just close your eyes, and do it."  
  
She was confused, but did as he told her and closed her eyes. Images of cherry-blossoms appeared in the darkness; petals were swept up by the wind behind and swirled it up into the night sky. She opened her eyes and saw darkness as the trees blanketed them from the eyes of their pursuers. Her bare feet felt the cold damp ground beneath and began to run clumsily again - carrying the weakened Hayate with her.  
  
author's note: let me drown in a sea of flames. 


	16. Chapter 16

Through Hayate's directions they arrived at a nearby German town. It was morning and the streets and houses were colored by an airy bluish hue. Blue is a cold color, and they had a first-hand experience of feeling it in their exposed skin. By this time Hayate could walk a little bit, and guided them to one of the houses - walking upwards through the steep cement tiled sidewalk. There were no other people on the streets at all, which they were thankful for. They were bound to get attention with the little article of clothing they each had on. It might have seemed obscene to some unknowing passers-by.   
  
They came to the door of the house and knocked. No one answered. Hayate knocked again, harder. Nothing. He was about to knock yet again when they heard noises coming from inside. A yellowish light could be seen through the windows, contrasting with the grayish-blue tone outside. And when the door opened, it was as if one of Van Gogh's stars came to one of Picasso's blue period paintings.  
  
A young girl, who Lenina guessed was about her age, appeared before them - framed perfectly by the rectangle of the door, with just a little part hidden by one side as to not be centered. Lenina studied her more carefully; she had very light brown hair - straight, and she was wearing a long shirt that came just above her knees. She was obviously groggy, having just been woken from her sleep, and ran a hand over her eyes.  
  
"Do you know what time it is? The Jehova's Witness doesn't come around this early." She had her hand on top of her eyes like a visor. The eyes themselves were barely opened - a sour expression on her face. That expression was gone in an instant though, and her eyes became wide open. "Ein…what are you doing here?"  
  
Lenina was bit confused and wondered who she was talking to. She then turned and saw Hayate force a painful smile. "We were just in the neighborhood and thought we'd stop by."  
  
"Oh?" the girl then turned and suddenly noticed Lenina for the first time. "Ohh, I didn't realize you brought company." She inspected the red-head more closely. "I know you don't I?"  
  
Lenina shook her head, "No, I don't think so…" unsure.   
  
"Well, nevermind." The girl then crossed her arms together and looked around behind them. "Oh, I'm sorry, it's so cold out. Please come in."  
  
"Thank you, Hitomi" Hayate said as he limped into the house. Lenina followed him, holding on to one of his arms.  
  
"What happened to you Ein?" Hitomi asked as she closed the door. There was a little more than a subtle hint of concern in her voice.  
  
"Don't worry about it, we just ran into some disturbed people, that's all." He tried to pass it off casually with a forced smile.  
  
"I'll say, they have to be if they dressed you guys up like that." Hitomi was still skeptical, she knew there was more it than that, but she decided to let it pass. "Or did they bother you because you were dressed like that?"  
  
Hayate sat down in the couch. "Hey, this is a fashion statement."  
  
"You don't have any pants Ein."  
  
"Well, neither do you." He laughed lightly as he chided with her. It reminded him of his relatively short stay there when he was still suffering from amnesia.   
  
"This is my sleeping attire."  
  
"Besides, I thought you Europeans do these kinds of crazy things all the time?" He was enjoying this.  
  
"No! Normal people don't go around in the streets naked."  
  
Lenina stood there beside the couch listening to them argue. She felt uncomfortable just standing there quietly; the two were obviously old friends. Hitomi turned to her and extended her hand. "Oh I'm sorry, how rude of me. I'm Hitomi."  
  
She took the hand firmly and said her name.  
  
"That's funny. I swear I've seen you before. Weren't you in that tournament…?"  
  
Hayate interrupted before that conversation could go any further. He knew where it would lead, and he knew that it would reveal certain truths and questions he did not feel like answering at the time. "We're tired Hitomi. She helped carry me all night."  
  
"Okay then." Hitomi still wanted to ask Hayate what happened, but decided he was right. "You can sleep in one of the guest rooms Lenina. I'll take you up there." Lenina nodded and followed the girl towards the stairs. Hitomi turned her head to Hayate. "You know where your old room still is, right?"  
  
"Yeah." He then remembered something. "Where's sensei?"   
  
"My parents are on vacation overseas." Hitomi shouted from upstairs. "They won't be back for a couple of more weeks…"  
  
author's note: read and review. flames, comments, constructive criticisms or anything else are all welcomed (sorry alex, it's succinct and to the point.)  
  
also, thanks to kochan for sharing her ideas and opening up new avenues for which this story to go to. 


	17. Chapter 17

It had been a long night. Lenina had carried Hayate on her back for hours. When Hitomi left her, she jumped readily into the soft bed. She closed her eyes and remembered what had happened that night. Her legs felt like they were just about ready to collapse right out from under her but knew she had to keep running. Hayate was not oblivious to this and asked to rest a bit, to which she whole-heartedly complied. She sat him down under a large plastic tree and sat there herself - trying to catch her breath. She could see her heavy breathing on the cold air as she looked up and sighed to the stained moon, who was smiling serenely.  
  
"Do you even know where we are?" She had asked tearfully. She was not certain who she asked that question to - Hayate or the moon. But Hayate thankfully answered it.  
  
"Germany…" He said softly.  
  
Lenina looked at him - her face lined with fatigue. "How do you know?"  
  
"I've been here before." Hayate smiled to the slight wind.  
  
She brought her hands to her arms and folded them across her body at the feel of the cold. Hayate noticed this and slowly wrapped his weakened arms over her.  
  
"We'll generate more body heat if we move closer together."  
  
As she felt his weight over her, she could not protest; she didn't want to. She just wanted comfort - any kind of comfort.  
  
Hayate stroked her hair as she balled herself in his arms. "I know a safe place where we can stay and hide for a while. It'll be alright Kasumi."  
  
If she heard him, she didn't say anything; she was too tired. Dream clouds floated above them. Giant toys were searching the forest - building fires. Lenina looked lazily into the stream that flowed downwards. She thought: it must taste so sweet; little mice were sailing on it on boats constructed from blocks of sugar cubes - with pink and blue leaves and sails.  
  
She looked at Hayate's hand. She wondered if it tasted like sugar too, so she decided to taste it. It was made of salt. She looked further down the stream; there was a fountain there - like a cake sprouting icing.  
  
The wind and the moon were talking above. Their voices boomed so loud, she couldn't really hear what they were saying at all. She looked up and saw the moon smiling at her. Then little moon men jumped off from his nose in parachutes. They landed near the fountain, where cupid was micturating punch around the whipped cream roses. They looked like they were made of Swiss cheese, which Lenina became puzzled by. Didn't Hayate say they were in Germany?  
  
She didn't have time to answer her own questions because she and Hayate had to run from the evil cheese men carrying kitchen utensils. They ran and ran as bicycles with dove wings flew over them. They fired newspapers at them. She didn't like it one bit cause' the newspapers didn't have any funny pages in them. And she desperately wanted to do a crossword puzzle. Dew drops caressed them as they ran.  
  
They came across a table under a giant mushroom. It invited them for some tea and biscuits, and the chairs were only too happy to have them sit on them. She took one of the sugar boats in the stream and placed it on the tea. The mice that were in it became very angry and exploded and became frogs. One of the cheese men was catching up to them so she killed it and broke of its arm to go with the biscuits.   
  
After tea time with lawn gnomes, who later came by, they finally arrived on a small German town where Hayate took her to one of the houses.  
  
~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~  
  
The sun beamed through the window into the sleeping figure of Lenina. Bright light filled the room and cast soft shadows wherever an object got in the way of its path. Soft as the white quilts she slept in was the feather-light magnification of the sun's rays through the glass, which played on the tender skin of the young woman sleeping on the comfortable bed. She opened her eyes slowly and took in the light allowed by her bright-brown irises. Her soft orange locks spilled its contents into the white that was everywhere. Lenina sat up and stretched her upper body as a sign of greeting to the afternoon sun.  
  
"I hope you slept well." She heard a voice say. Her mind wanted it to be Marie, hoping that everything that had happened was all just a dream. But as she turned her eyes, she was greeted by site of the German girl she had met earlier, walking into the room.  
  
Her heart dropped, but she attempted a small smile as she got up to her feet. "Yes, I feel a lot better."  
  
She began straightening out the bed. "Please let me do it." She heard Hitomi say as the German girl handed her a small stack of clothes. Lenina placed them down and continued with the mattress. "You're about my size, right? I think those clothes will fit you."  
  
After they were finished, Lenina picked the clothes up again. "Thank you."  
  
"If you want to take a shower, the bathroom's across the hall. There are clean extra towels in there so feel free to use them."  
  
Lenina smiled politely. "Thank you, a shower sounds nice about now."  
  
~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~  
  
After she had taken a shower, she got out of the bathroom - a white towel wrapped around her figure. Lenina carefully closed the door and was headed towards her room, when she ran into Hayate. She looked up to his taller form and gradually came to his eyes. She could see that he too was staring at her - at the towel that hugged her body tightly. Then realizing she was looking into his eyes, he averted her gaze and looked down towards the wooden floor.  
  
"I'd like to thank you for saving my life last night." He smiled sheepishly. He looked up into her eyes with a sincere look. "And I'm sorry."  
  
This startled Lenina for a bit. "For what…?"  
  
"…For getting you into this mess. It was my fault."  
  
"Umm okay…" She didn't know how to respond. "It would help if I properly understood what was going on."  
  
"Don't let it trouble you. The important thing is that you're safe and we'll be going back to Hong Kong soon. I won't let anything else happen to you."  
  
With that he immediately started to walk past her. She turned to see him reaching for the bathroom door and called his name out. She didn't know what to say when she saw him turn to her. She just blurted it out of impulse.  
  
She tentatively reached out to caress the side of his face and moved closer. When Hayate made no attempt at objecting she became more daring and kissed him softly. He showed no response at all though, causing her to break away.  
  
She felt hurt and a little embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I…"  
  
He cast his eyes down, away from hers. "I have to go…to the bathroom." Hayate felt stupid but he didn't know what else to say.  
  
~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~@~~~  
  
Lenina looked down at the small gravel path-way that she walked on. She could see the tight fitting blue jeans Hitomi had given her striding to and fro. She had also worn a white tank-top with a small red phoenix design on it. The German girl seemed to have a fondness for it. The mythical bird graced the yellow tank-top she was wearing too, along with a blue denim jacket.   
  
She looked at the girl and Hayate walking in front of her. They seemed very playful with each other - laughing and making jokes. It made her feel slightly envious and left-out. Hayate had been trying his best to avoid her since that last encounter.  
  
Hitomi wanted them to take a walk around the town as to not waste the perfect day. The sun was still high up when they reached the park. There were other people there too out to enjoy the afternoon sun. Some just walking, while others, mostly little kids, were running around playing along the grass.  
  
Hitomi was just talking to Hayate about past memories that Lenina knew nothing about. The German girl addressed her from time to time out of politeness, but Lenina didn't really pay attention. Her thought were occupied. By what, she didn't know. She supposed she was just occupied with trying not to think. Or maybe a thousand thoughts meshing into one incomprehensible blur.  
  
From time to time though, a thought would surface - distinguishing itself from the others. It was mostly about what had happened in the past few days. But then it would be drowned out. She couldn't even remember some things about it anymore; she didn't want to. And with what little memory she had all together, there was far too few left indeed.  
  
The trio ran into some of Hitomi's school friends while walking around. And they joined the small group of German teens socializing on the open but slightly crowded fields. Lenina felt a bit of an outcast as she subtley began to break away from the group.  
  
No one seemed to notice except for Hayate, who slowly walked up to where she was sitting. She looked up when he began to sit next to her. His face was looking forwards though, towards the playing children nearby. She felt that he finally wanted to talk to her, but she didn't how to begin it. So she just said whatever popped-up first in her mind. "Why does she call you Ein?"  
  
His body was bent down slightly, shoulders hunched. He locked his hands together nervously and he looked like he was thinking of what to say, or rather contemplating if he should answer it - not the just that one question but all the questions that he knew would inevitably follow it. "It was my name for a while."  
  
She smiled bitterly at that. "How many names do you have? Does it change from place to place?"  
  
"No, just the two…Hayate is my real name though." He paused a bit - thinking. "Ein was the name given to me when I had amnesia…"  
  
Lenina turned to him a bit startled. "Amnesia…?"  
  
"Yeah…" He smiled, still not facing her. "Those people that imprisoned us - they're called DOATEC…"  
  
"I've heard of them." She interrupted.   
  
"Anyway, they were conducting some experiments on me. I guess it must have failed cause they dumped me and left me for dead in the woods, without any memory at all."  
  
"What kind of experiments?" Impulse again - not knowing what else to say.  
  
"God only knows. For all I know they were trying to make a clone of me too…" He stopped after realizing what he had just said, but he knew it was too late. Memories already came flooding to her.  
  
Hayate waited in the brief seconds of silence. "Who's Kasumi…?"  
  
"My sister…" He whispered.  
  
"What's she like?"  
  
He looked at her, but it was her turn to face away. "She's the sweetest person I know - and the most beautiful. She has long red hair and the face that would put most angels to shame."  
  
Lenina smiled a bit. "Hmm…you must really love her."  
  
"More than anything…"  
  
They both looked up when they heard their names being called out. Hitomi was running towards them.  
  
"Guys, my friends and I gonna hang out at the mall for a while. Maybe get something to eat and catch a movie. You wanna come along?"  
  
"Sure, sounds nice." Hayate beamed, though he usually hated doing such things. He just wanted to go along with anything to lie low for a while. He stood and turned back to motion towards Lenina. "You coming?"  
  
She nodded and slowly got up to follow the two who were walking towards the rest of their group.  
  
author's note: please read and review. You know the usual, flames, criticisms, just say hi, whatever. If this chapter offended you in anyway (suggested themes, bad writing, limited grasp of human emotion, limited grasp of youth social activities, cultural ignorance, or whatever) please say so. 


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